


The Girl They Called "Bounder"

by AlexanderGrafton



Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: F/M, Original Character - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-03
Packaged: 2019-04-17 21:11:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14197776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexanderGrafton/pseuds/AlexanderGrafton
Summary: Humans and reapers don't mix.  Death cannot coexist with life.  Reapers simply don't pursue relationships with mortals.  This is what the Grim Reaper Ronald Knox has always been told.  But what will happen when he runs across a human girl who steals his heart?





	1. The Girl

The girl ran.

She ran until her lungs burned and her feet ached. She ran until her short copper hair, slick with sweat, whipped into her eyes and stung. She ran until she fell, exhausted, into a small bush in the forest. With a sigh, she passed out, not even bothering to put her knapsack under her head for a pillow.

~three hours later~

"What's this?" a male voice asked. "A girl, asleep in the bushes? What's a pretty girl like that doing out here in the middle of nowhere?" The girl jerked awake and tried to bolt and run, but the man who had spoken held her arm. "Now just wait a moment, miss. We're not going to hurt you. I promise." The girl stopped struggling and looked the man up and down with large blue-silver eyes. He was a little taller than she, with impossibly bright green eyes, glasses, and messy blond hair that was dyed black in the back. Kind of funny-looking, but also kinda cute.

"Who are you?" she demanded, trying to keep a tremor out of her voice. The man smiled reassuringly.

"My name's Ronald Knox." He bowed slightly and kissed her hand. "At your service." He gestured to the other man with him, a short fellow with mousy brown hair, glasses, and those same green eyes. "This is my colleague, Alan Humphries." Alan also bowed.

"Um... hi." The girl blushed. 

"You're injured," the one called Alan said, taking her chin in one hand. She flinched, not used to being touched after so long alone.

"It's just a scratch," she retorted.

"An infected one. What happened?" The girl hesitated.

"A bullet grazed me," she said finally. The two men raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. 

"Well, come on," said Ronald cheerily. "We can't just leave you out here. Let's get you back to the Dispatch."

"Dispatch?" the girl said. Then she realized. "Oh my gosh. You're Grim Reapers." She had heard legends about them: cold, silent men in black business suits with calculating green eyes hidden behind spectacles. But, these two seemed far from cold. On the contrary, the one called Ronald seemed actually friendly. The one called Alan...she was going to have to think about that. He wasn't evil though, she could tell that much.

Ronald nodded. ''I had a hunch you guys weren't human." Her new friends chuckled.

"Come on. Its getting late and cold and dangerous. We're not leaving you out here to freeze." Ronald whipped off his black trench coat and tucked it around her shoulders. She burrowed into it, grateful for the warmth. She didn't even mind or notice when he scooped her up, carrying her bridal style. "By the way," Ronald remarked, "I don't believe I got your name." The girl began to respond, then stopped. Should she? After all that had happened, could she trust these two reapers? She thought so, but just to be sure...

"S-Sable," she said finally. "My name is Sable." Ronald nodded.

"Sable," he repeated softly, getting a feel for the name. "I like it." He solidified his grip on her and started walking. "Shall we keep her at your place, Alan? At least until she's healed?" Alan grunted in response. 

"What are you planning to do once she's well?" he asked, falling into step with his friend. Ronald sighed.

"We'll have to take her to William. Sooner or later, he'd find out anyhow." Half-asleep, the girl now known as Sable perked up her ears. Who was this William they referred to? She certainly hoped he would be as nice as Ronald.

She was in and out of consciousness for several days. Ronald stayed over at Alan's house for those few days just to tend her himself. His own house, as he told the older reaper, "wasn't fit for a dog, much less a lady".

One morning, Sable awoke to find someone picking up her knapsack. "What are you doing?!" She sat bolt upright and grabbed the person by the collar. She snatched the knapsack with the other hand. "Mine!" she snapped.

"I'm sorry!" The knapsack was released, and she pulled it to herself, cradling it like a child. Slowly, she looked up at the intruder, revealed to be Ronald. "I... I didn't know." Sable sighed and laid the knapsack beside her.

"I should be apologizing, not you," she mumbled. "I had no call to snap like that. I'm sorry." She stiffened at the hand on her shoulder. Ronald sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled her into a warm, tender hug. She remained rigid for several moments, then relaxed and laid her head against his shoulder.

"You don't need to apologize to me, little one." His voice had changed. Before, it had been loud, sharp, and cheerful. The voice of a man who loved life and wasn't afraid to show it. Now there was almost a sad tone about it. She could barely detect a lilt in his voice that was really rather comforting. She closed her eyes. "Whatever happened to you... it wasn't your fault." He pulled away and brushed away the tears that were spilling from her eyes. "It's all right, Sable. I won't judge you if you cry. It's not a sign of weakness for someone to cry. Just means they're human. We reapers want to cry too, sometimes." He stroked her cheek tenderly. "Go ahead and let it out, little one. They're only tears." She looked up at him for a moment, blinked, then dissolved into sobs. She hid her face in his chest and cried her heart out. And all the while he just sat there. Holding her.


	2. The Dispatch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the human girl Sable is introduced to the other members of the Shinigami Dispatch.

~Ronald's POV~

Several days later, the girl we had rescued was finally well enough to sit up, feed herself and walk a little. That's when Alan and I decided we had to take her to the Dispatch.

"Won't your boss be upset that you brought a human around?" I rolled my eyes.

"No more than he usually is," I muttered. She gulped. Seeing her reaction, I was quick to explain. "Aww, Sable, you don't have much to worry about. William may be strict, but he's really a great guy once you get to know him." She hugged her arms, evidently hoping I was right.

~Sable's POV~

I had never seen a building like the Reaper Dispatch even back home. It was just so... shiny. 

"Here we are, Sable," Ronald said, opening the door for me. "The Grim Reaper Staffing Association. This is where William works, which is why we're going here." I stepped inside and immediately wished I could turn invisible. Too many people. Waaaaay too many people.

"Ronald Knox," someone said in a very cold voice that told me they weren't happy to see us. "Just explain to me why you have brought a human into our realm?"

"Oh, good morning, William!" Ronald said brightly. I hid behind him and clung onto his arm, taking the opportunity to look at the reaper named William. 

He was tall, much taller than Ronald, and he had black hair slicked back from his forehead. Same reaper eyes, same black business suit. The only differences were in facial expression and minor details. While Ronald's attire was a little more relaxed, with the collar unbuttoned and tie loose, William's collar was judiciously buttoned, and his tie perfectly tied, the knot just below his throat. A handsome man... if not for the perpetual scowl. 

As I finished my observation, I realized that Ronald had stopped talking, and that William was now looking directly at me.

"Well?" he said, in the same tone, but slightly softer now. "Do you have a name, child?" I hesitated. He was pretty scary. But then I grew a little braver. I stepped out from behind Ronald and walked straight up to William.

He looked down at me, and I up at him, for he was much taller than I. I held his gaze for a moment, then smiled and stuck out my hand.

"I'm Sable! It's very nice to meet you!"

 

~Ronald's POV~

I suspected Sable would be a little nervous when meeting William. Even most reapers got nervous around William. But to watch her walk straight up to my cold, unemotional boss and offer him her hand? Unbelievable! 

More surprising was William's reaction. Instead of stepping back and scowling as he would normally have done, he... smiled...? Yes. No doubt about it. My boss actually smiled! Then he accepted the human girl's hand and bowed.

"It is an honor to meet you, Sable. I am William T. Spears at your service."

~Sable's POV~

I was a little surprised that this cold-looking man would actually shake my hand and smile at me. When he let go of my hand, I smiled up at him, then turned back to Ronald and Alan.

"You know, guys, this is the first time in over ten years that I've felt truly safe." Ronald chuckled.

"Ten years? You're not that old." I rolled my eyes and moved to lay a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm older than I look."

"How old are you, seventeen?" I burst out laughing.

"Eighteen! My birthday is the thirty-first of October." He blushed in embarrassment. "Don't worry about it. I've had people back home tell me I don't look a day under thirty." I looked at the shocked expressions on their faces and laughed again.

Behind us, William cleared his throat.

"Sable, I would like to introduce you to two of our senior reapers." He gestured to two reapers standing a little ways away from the others. "This," he said, pointing to the taller of the two, a tall, scruffy-looking man with blue-tinted glasses and brown cornrows in his otherwise blond hair, "is Eric Slingby." I shook Eric Slingby's hand.

"Pleased to meet ya," he said in an unmistakably Scottish accent.

"And this," William said, indicating the other man with some measure of disgust, "is Mr. Grell Sutcliffe."

"Miss Sutcliffe!" the redheaded... thing said in a shrill voice. I shook their hand anyway. The firm grip and the height, despite the makeup and hair, made me realize that Grell Sutcliffe was in fact male.

All the introductions aside, the next order of business was dinner.


End file.
